The build up to the 10th parliamentary elections in Bangladesh on
5 January was tarnished by serious levels of violence, intimidation,
enforced general strikes, and transport blockades. The 18-Party
Alliance, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), objected
to the constitutionally valid electoral arrangements, and did not
contest the election due to their concerns that the election would
not be free and fair. Half of parliamentary seats were uncontested,
and the Awami League won a second successive term. Election day
was marked by violence: 21 deaths were reported, and over 100
school-based polling centres burnt down.

We repeatedly condemned all forms of violence and encouraged
political parties to work together. On 6 January, the then FCO
Minister for Human Rights, Baroness Warsi, deplored acts of
intimidation and unlawful violence from all parties, and urged
all of Bangladesh’s political parties to work together to address
political accountability. We also raised our concerns with both
the government and opposition parties privately. Baroness Warsi
raised concerns with visiting Bangladeshi ministers, as did former
Minister of State for International Development, Alan Duncan, and
former Parliamentary Under-Secretary for State for International
Development, Lynne Featherstone, during visits to Bangladesh. All
three ministers urged Bangladesh’s political parties to work
together to strengthen democratic accountability, and to build
wider confidence in future elections.

After the elections, the BNP committed to peaceful protest,
although political tension at the end of the year led to the
re-emergence of widespread political violence. There were
significantly fewer enforced general strikes and transport blockades
in 2014 and, overall, the country experienced a period of relative
calm. However, there has been no political dialogue between the
country’s two largest parties: the BNP and Awami League.
NGOs report that impunity of all Bangladesh’s law enforcement
agencies continues to be a serious problem. NGOs condemned
a post-election spike in numbers of reported extrajudicial
killings and enforced disappearances allegedly carried out by
law enforcers. Allegations of involvement by the Rapid Action
Battalion in the death of seven men in Narayanganj drew
domestic and international criticism. Baroness Warsi called for
prompt, transparent and impartial investigations when she met
the Bangladeshi High Commissioner in May. As yet, none of the
three investigations established to find those guilty have delivered
findings, and no charges have been brought.

The government has proposed revisions to the Foreign Donations
Act (pending parliamentary approval) and a new Broadcast Policy,
while some using digital media to criticise the government have
been detained under the Information Communications Technology
Act. This has generated concerns about civil society space,
media freedoms, and government power to suppress criticism or
dissent. The government has also restored parliament’s authority
to impeach judges, which, depending on how it is implemented,
could compromise the independence of the judiciary.

Prime Minister David Cameron met Bangladesh’s Prime Minster
Sheikh Hasina on 22 July. He noted our disappointment over the
conduct of the election. Both agreed on the importance of an
open society and political systems in which democratic political
participation and media freedoms are respected.